Priya entered her room, her shoulders heavy with exhaustion and her thoughts tangled in a storm of uncertainty. But as she stepped inside, she stopped abruptly. Mrs. Mehra was already there, perched on the edge of a chair with a restless expression, her fingers clasped tightly together. The moment their eyes met, Mrs. Mehra rose to her feet, her anxiety evident in every line of her face.

"Priya," Mrs. Mehra said, her voice quivering with urgency, "where is he? You said not to come, but I... I couldn't stay away. I had to see him."

Priya's heart sank further. She shut the door behind her, the faint click echoing like a drumbeat of apprehension. She approached slowly, her lips pressed into a thin line. How could she begin to explain? The weight of what she had to reveal felt insurmountable, and the consequences of her confession loomed heavily over her.

Mrs. Mehra's worried gaze searched Priya's face, reading the hesitation in her expression. "What is it?" she asked softly, her hands reaching out to grip Priya's arm. "What are you hiding from me?"

Priya took a deep breath, her chest tightening. She had spent years burying the truth, locking it away in a corner of her heart she rarely visited. But now, with Mrs. Mehra standing before her, she knew the time had come. There was no way to avoid it any longer.

"Mrs. Mehra," Priya began, her voice faltering, "there's something you need to know. Something I should have told you from the beginning."

Mrs. Mehra's brows knitted in concern. "What is it, Priya?"

Priya hesitated, her words caught in her throat, but then she forced them out, each one laden with emotion. "Ram and I... we were married. A long time ago."

The room seemed to still as the words hung in the air. Mrs. Mehra's face froze, her eyes widening in disbelief. "Married?" she echoed, her voice barely above a whisper. "You were married to Ram?"

Priya nodded, her hands trembling. "Yes. But we... it didn't last. We parted ways. And I never wanted to come back into his life, Mrs. Mehra. I never intended for this to happen."

Mrs. Mehra sank back into the chair, stunned. She stared at Priya as if trying to piece together a puzzle that had suddenly revealed an entirely different picture. Her breath hitched, and she pressed a hand to her chest. "Why didn't you tell me this on the first day? Why didn't you say anything, Priya?"

Priya looked down, her guilt weighing her down like a boulder. "Because I didn't want to disrupt his life—or mine. I didn't want to relive the past. I thought... I thought I could stay distant, just treat him as a patient. But fate..." her voice broke, and she looked away, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "Fate had other plans."

Mrs. Mehra's lips parted, but no words came. She shook her head slowly, processing the revelation. "Fate," she murmured, almost to herself. "Fate brought the two of you back together."

Priya clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms. "It's not fate. It's a cruel twist," she said bitterly. "We've both suffered enough. I just... I don't know what to do anymore."

Mrs. Mehra reached out, placing a gentle hand on Priya's arm. Her expression softened, though her shock had not yet faded. "Maybe fate isn't cruel, Priya," she said softly. "Maybe it's giving you both a second chance."

Priya's eyes flickered with pain as she turned to look at her. "A second chance? At what, Mrs. Mehra? To break each other all over again?"

Mrs. Mehra's gaze didn't waver. "Or to heal," she said, her words laced with quiet determination. "Sometimes, the hardest journeys are the ones that lead to peace."

Priya felt her throat tighten as tears threatened to spill. She didn't know whether to feel anger, sorrow, or hope. All she knew was that the weight of the past had caught up with her, and there was no escaping it now.

Priya's walls crumbled as her emotions spilled over, tears streaming down her face. Her voice trembled as she spoke, each word heavy with the weight of her pain. "I don't have the strength to build it all over again," she sobbed. "You've never seen him the way he used to be, Mrs. Mehra. I can't... I don't want to experience that pain again. You won't understand."

She clutched her arms around herself as though trying to shield her broken heart. Her breaths came in uneven gasps, and the room seemed to close in around her. Mrs. Mehra, who had remained calm until now, let out a deep sigh and stepped closer.

"Priya," Mrs. Mehra said softly, her voice carrying a maternal warmth, "what I've realized over these past two years, being by his side, is that Ram is carrying a pain so deep, so consuming... and I don't even know what it is. He never shares it. But you, Priya—you have to understand what it's about. You're the only one he has left now. His family is gone. If you push him away, if you pull yourself out of his life completely, you may regret it later."

Priya's teary, reddened eyes lifted to meet Mrs. Mehra's. Her lips quivered, but she couldn't form a response. The older woman reached out and gently placed her hands on Priya's shoulders, her gaze steady and unwavering.

"I've taken care of countless patients in my life," Mrs. Mehra continued, her voice tinged with sadness. "But Ram... Ram was different. He became like a son to me. I lost my own son years ago, Priya. Do you know what that's like? To pour your heart into someone, even knowing they may not recognize you tomorrow? He doesn't remember me now, and maybe he never will. But the memories we shared, the bond we had—I'll carry that in my heart forever."

Priya's tears fell harder as Mrs. Mehra's words struck deep into her soul. Her defenses, already fragile, crumbled entirely. "He is a good man," Mrs. Mehra said gently, tilting her head to catch Priya's gaze. "You just need to see him again, not through the lens of the past, but for who he is now."

Overwhelmed, Priya broke down completely. Her knees buckled, and she pressed her hands to her face, sobbing openly. Mrs. Mehra didn't hesitate. She pulled Priya into her arms, holding her tightly as if to shield her from the weight of the world.

"It's okay," Mrs. Mehra whispered, stroking Priya's hair. "Let it out, my dear. It's okay to cry. But don't shut your heart out of fear. Sometimes, the love we think is lost just needs time to find its way back."

Priya clung to her, her sobs muffled against the fabric of Mrs. Mehra's sari. In that moment, the two women shared a bond of grief and understanding, each carrying their own pain but finding solace in one another. The room felt quieter, as if the storm raging within Priya had begun to still, leaving her raw but not entirely hopeless.

That night, the weight of the world seemed to press down on Priya. As she stepped through the door of her home, every step felt heavy with the burden she had been carrying. Shipra ji had tried to comfort her, tried to make sense of everything, but Priya couldn't find the strength to open up. She couldn't share the turmoil gnawing at her heart. All she could manage was a simple question to Shipra ji  if Peehu was okay, and then she retreated into the quiet solitude of her room.

She collapsed onto the bed, the silence around her amplifying the chaos inside her mind. Her gaze flickered to the ceiling, the familiar comfort of her own room offering no solace tonight. Thoughts of Ram flooded her mind, and alongside them, Mrs. Mehra's words echoed relentlessly. "You need to recognize him, Priya. He's the only one who has you now. Don't push him away."

But how could she? How could she let Ram back into her life when the biggest secret she had ever kept from him loomed over them both like a dark cloud? The thought of telling him about Peehu sent a wave of fear through her. She could already hear his voice, filled with disbelief and rejection. He had never wanted a child—he had never wanted the responsibility of becoming a father.

It had been Priya's choice, her decision to keep the child. Peehu was the light of her life, a decision she'd made with all her heart. But now, with Ram back in her world, Priya couldn't help but wonder if it was all going to unravel. If he found out, what would he do? Would he resent her for keeping Peehu a secret from him? Would he hate her for not telling him the truth when they were married?

Priya buried her face in her hands, her breath hitching as tears slipped between her fingers. She couldn't stop sobbing. She was caught in the middle of a storm she couldn't control. Her heart ached with a mixture of longing for the man she once knew, and the fear of the consequences that would come if he ever truly remembered everything.

"Should I give him a second chance?" The question lingered in her mind, unanswered and impossible to resolve. She was torn between the desire to reclaim what had been lost and the fear of losing herself in the process.

With her body trembling and her heart breaking, Priya curled up on the bed, pulling the covers tightly around her as if they could shield her from the weight of her own thoughts. She let the tears flow freely, the sobs echoing in the empty room as the night stretched on, and the uncertainty of her future hung heavy in the air.